


It's All Fair Game

by alexspacesout, Fandoms_Forever



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Awkwardness, Cute, Fluff, Gamer!Eren, M/M, Pick Up Lines, Pining!Levi, Writing, but no smut, cursing, innuendo galore, maybe mentioning of, publishers!Erwin and Hanji, writer!levi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-20
Updated: 2018-03-30
Packaged: 2018-07-25 13:10:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 6,795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7533985
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alexspacesout/pseuds/alexspacesout, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fandoms_Forever/pseuds/Fandoms_Forever
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Levi first spots this cute gamer boy sucking on his lollipop, he finds himself immediately infatuated. It's only downhill from there. Eren's life becomes a two player game, and, of course, he gets stuck with the noob who'd rather be admiring from afar than getting his hands dirty. </p><p>And boy does Levi get his hands dirty.</p><p>~THIS ISN'T DEAD, I'M JUST A PIECE OF SHIT~</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Lollipop

**Author's Note:**

> Heads up, some innuendo in this one~

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Levi lays eyes on the most gorgeous human being to ever exist, he immediately falls head over heels. When he spots the DS in his hands- his heart explodes. After a bit of an awkward encounter, he manages to catch his name...Eren.

Levi has never been so attracted to someone sucking on a lollipop. He wasn’t sure what it was about the green-eyed man that turned him on so much, but he couldn’t ignore it.

It almost seemed like he was purposely teasing him, taking an extra long time to lick all the way from the stick to the top of the lollipop, swirling his tongue around the width. Levi holds his breath as the brunette takes the whole of the lollipop in his cheeks, swishing it back and forth inside. With a ‘pop’, he takes it out of his mouth momentarily, only to shove it back in.

Barely able to sit still, Levi keeps his eyes glued on the erotic sight before him. It’d be just his luck to get stuck across the sexiest man on the subway with a dead phone. As he glances around, he notices that nearly everybody is caught up in their phones, likely playing a game or browsing through their stupid social networking.

However, looking back at this sexy brunette, he notices that rather than a phone he has a classic DS in his hands. There’s something about the idea of a gamer playing him like his joystick that thrills Levi to his core.

Clearing his throat carefully, Levi stands up and smoothly crosses the aisle, taking the seat just beside the aforementioned gamer.

“Hello.” Shit, was that too formal? He probably thinks I’m some stuck up jerk in a $1,000 suit-

“Hey, 'sup?” He barely glances up, absorbed in the game of Pokemon on his DS.

Levi shifts uncomfortably, trying to keep his eyes off the lollipop hanging loosely from the man’s mouth. Suddenly, Levi grabs the stick of the lollipop and pulls it out of the man’s mouth, only to put it in his own. He only briefly considers the germs, more concerned about the reaction to his completely unnecessary but primal urge for action.

The man pauses his game and looks up with hurt and confusion in his eyes that quickly fades upon meeting the steely grey gaze looking blankly at him. He can’t describe it, but there’s something familiar about them.

In the same moment their eyes lock, Levi feels a little surge of energy shoot to his heart. Why is he so familiar..,?

Silently, the two sit there staring at each other, the lollipop still sitting in Levi’s mouth.

“Eren…” Finally, the man shuts his DS to set it on the bench beside him, holding out his hand for Levi to shake.

“Lebbi.” His sound gets distorted by the grape lollipop slowly dissolving in his mouth. He expects Eren to take it back, but instead, he lets him keep it and pulls another one out of his back pocket to unwrap and stick in his mouth with a chuckle.

“Nice to meet you, 'Lebbi’.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This first chapter was the oneshot that inspired this to become a full fanfic, thank you for everyone that encouraged this to happen!
> 
> This is supposed to be a fun side project to keep myself writing, so my aim is to keep it minimally stressful. That being said, I'm going to aim for at least 1k per chapter and an update once a week. I don't think I'll be setting a day until I've fallen into a habit, but keep a look out for what's to come! Thanks for reading <3


	2. Picking Up the Trash

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Eren's full attention, Levi's desperate to find a way to make him stay.  
> (Warning: Terrible pick-up lines and awkwardness ahead)

Levi stared at Eren blankly, unconsciously swishing the lollipop back and forth slowly in his mouth. He can't help but let his eyes flicker back and forth between his eyes and lips, savoring the warmth radiating from him. He doesn't even realize he's staring until Eren clears his throat to get his attention. 

"So...'sup?" Eren chuckles lightly, softening Levi's heart into a mushy cotton ball. Oh, the way Eren's adam's apple bobbed as he talked...

"Nah muhth, you?" Levi had forgotten to move the lollipop to the side in his awe, distorting his words almost beyond recognition. Somehow, Eren still manages to interpret them.

"Just enjoying a day out on the town." Eren skillfully talks out of the corner of his mouth, as though he regularly sucks on lollipops. You know, come to think of it, he did happen to have an extra one in his pocket. Not many people carry around lollipops on a regular basis...

Without thinking, Levi allows his thoughts to spill out of his mouth. "Tho do you juth keeph lollipahps in your pahckeths all tha thime?" Levi internally scolds himself for allowing such a stupid question to slip out.

Eren pauses momentarily, caught off guard by the sudden change of topic. As understanding crosses over his face, he melts into a gentle smile. "Ah, yeah, I just like lollipops a ton, something to keep my taste buds alive I suppose."

Levi nods as though he understands, but his eyes remain void of recognition. Eren seems to notice this and decides to further explain.

"Being alive is the best experience you can ever have, you know? So with this short time I have to enjoy it, I'm going to live life to its full extent. Stimulating my senses gives me this rush of pure happiness to which nothing else compares. It's like being on a constant roller coaster of-damn, sorry." He ducks his head in embarrassment and rubs the back of his neck. "I tend to bore people with all my deep philosophical shit. I'll just- yeah."

Levi tries to open his mouth to convince Eren there's nothing wrong with it. In fact, that he rather enjoys deep and meaningful conversation. However, his mouth stays shut and he's left to watch in silence as Eren reluctantly returns to his DS. Levi sticks around long enough to watch him turn it on and slide the stylus out. Certain Eren was no longer interested in him, he swivels back to face front.

Seconds away from returning to his seat across the aisle, he pauses upon noting Eren's frustration.

Eyebrows furrowed, Eren shakes his DS and mutters curses under his breath. _"This damn thing, not booting up the stupid game..."_ In all honesty, Eren's more frustrated at ruining his chances with Levi than at the DS deciding to crap out. Not like he was ever going to admit that.

"Give me that." Levi holds Eren's arm still with one hand and uses the other to yank the DS out of his tight grip. After scanning it a bit, Levi determines there's no major problem. With the use of a simple trick he picked up from a friend, he could fix all of his problems at once. And when Levi says all, he means all.

He takes a moment to breathe deeply and gather himself before continuing, realizing this could make or break his chances with Eren. 

Once ready, he raises his gaze and makes direct eye contact with the glowing green orbs looking at him in wonder and confusion. Satisfied with the setup, he inhales and blows softly into the empty cartridge slot, clearing out anything that could've prevented the game from working properly. 

With the best sultry look Levi could muster, he returns the DS to Eren slowly. "That's not the only thing I can blow." It seems as though his goal is to only make the matter worse, for Levi follows the terrible pick-up line with the worst wink in human history. Somehow he remains completely unaware of his failure and is taken aback when Eren starts hysterically laughing.

Within no time, the whole subway car is staring at the hysterical boy doubled over with laughter. Eren's only support is the pole he managed to grab on the way down. 

Levi sits stiffly in silence, shifting his weight awkwardly while waiting for Eren to quiet down and become reasonable again. More than a few times Levi was sure Eren was done, but he'd just look back up and begin laughing again.

Nearly three minutes pass before Eren's able to pull himself together and fully return to his seat. "You just made my day." He's barely able to keep the laughter out of his voice, the massive smile giving his giddiness away. After all, Eren just managed to hit it off the most handsome man he's ever laid his eyes on. Not only was he handsome, but he was...what's the word... _pretty_ as well.

"Good, now can I have your number?" Levi just barely manages to keep the desperation out of his voice, embarrassed and certainly not ready to get down on his knees to beg. At least not today.

"Of fucking course, give me a sec." Eren goes shuffling through the pockets of his hoodie, a grin so wide it barely stays on his face. After a bit of rummaging, he manages to unearth a pen and a piece of scrap paper. As he bends over to scribble his digits down, Levi struggles to remember how to breathe.

With a soft sigh and a blinding grin, Eren hands Levi the slip of paper and stands up. "Talk to you again soon." Levi loses his breath completely when Eren winks at him.

He already had Levi in the palm of his hand, why not take advantage of it?

As the doors slide open and Eren steps out, Levi can't take his eyes away from the gorgeous sight before him. He has a shot with that spicy hunk of gamer after all.

And it doesn't even matter that he missed his station over 5 stops ago.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!! ^3^


	3. Why Would I "Poke A Man" ?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi texts the brat- uh- Eren and gets caught up in the prospect of spending time with him. Even after chastising himself for the idea, Levi finds himself sitting shoulder to shoulder with the gamer on the subway ride the next morning, getting educated on these odd creatures called "Pokemon".

Levi stares at the number sitting on his phone, his finger hovering over the call button. He's never been one to text, but the prospect of calling Eren terrifies him. After a bit of contemplating, Levi settles on a simple text of ' _hey, it's Levi'._

With a sigh he places his phone down on the coffee table, returning his eyes to the TV in front of him broadcasting the shitty news about the shitty world.

Every few minutes, Levi's eyes snap to his phone, only to be met with a dark screen. After checking it more than a few times, panic begins to bubble inside him. 

_What if he forgot who I am? Maybe it's too soon...but it's been nearly six hours since I last talked to him! Shit, that is too soon, isn't it?_

Levi holds out as long as he can, avoiding checking his phone at all costs for fear of being disappointed. It's not long until he feels like he might internally combust from the wait. 

Just as his hand meets the phone, it lights up with a notification from Eren. Previous worries forgotten, Levi begins to panic about Eren's response. Just because he saw it and decided to respond doesn't mean he's in the clear just yet. 

_Why do I even bother with communication, it's just a load of-_

Levi pauses his thought process, quickly reading Eren's message. 

_**Eren:** Sorry, I was playing a game :)_

Chastising himself for overreacting, Levi prepares to respond as level headed as possible. The last thing he wants is for Eren to think he's desperate.

**_Levi:_ ** _No problem, what were you playing?_

The second Levi hits the send button, he impatiently watches for the ominous three dots to dissolve into a message.

_**Eren:** Pokemon Go, you heard of it?_

Levi raises his eyebrow curiously.

_**Levi:** No, what is that?_

_**Eren:** It's based off of Pokemon (obvi) and you walk around catching these little creatures with your phone and taking over gyms to "become the very best, like no one ever was!" xD_

Despite having absolutely zero idea what "Pokemon" is, Levi responds as though he follows.

_**Levi:** Huh, interesting, is it fun?_

_**Eren:** The game itself isn't the best but it's a great way to get out to learn about places around you. _

Levi takes a moment to process that information. The only reason he's in town is to research for his book. As a struggling writer, his publisher suggested he wrote about an area to which people could relate. Even if the story isn't great, at least people would get a kick out of reading something from their town. So here he is, stuck with absolutely no idea where to begin. He could always get the app for himself, but why would he do that when he has his own tour guide?

With that thought in mind, Levi writes out his request, then quickly backspaces. 

_Shit...what if I get too attached? I'm only in town for a month...and what kind of nerve do I have, asking for him to spend his valuable time with a stranger like me?_

Frustrated but resigned to his fate, Levi texts back with a simple 'cool' and shuts his phone off, desperate to get away from the thoughts of Eren clouding his mind. He already allowed the sexy beast of a gamer excite him, there's no way he's going to let Eren dig any deeper.

* * *

When Eren gets on the subway the next morning, Levi half expects Eren to ignore him after the brief and rather rude conclusion to last night's conversation. Instead, he does the opposite. 

Eren looks around for a moment before spotting Levi sitting stiffly toward the back of the car. With a blinding smile, he adjusts the bag on his shoulder and slides in next to him. 

"Hey, how's it going?" Eren settles back into the seat, watching Levi expectantly. 

A little caught off guard by Eren's warm welcome, Levi takes a moment to respond. "Alright, you?" Unconsciously Levi fixes his posture and sits up a tad bit straighter, likely aiming to match Eren's height.

"Just dandy, absolutely dandy." Eren winks and pulls a cherry lollipop out of his back pocket to stick in his mouth. "Want one?" Eren points to the lollipop stick hanging from his mouth as he tucks the wrapper into his back pocket.

"As long as it's not from your mouth this time." Levi's mildly startled by the comment that slipped from his lips. It's almost like Eren's presence makes him bolder, he has yet to decide if that's a good thing.

Eren's chuckle strikes a chord in Levi, making his bland facade momentarily falter. Thank goodness Eren was too busy retrieving the lollipop to notice.

"Grape or apple?" Eren holds one up in each hand, wiggling them slightly as he announces their flavor. 

"Apple-" _of my eye. Shit, he's getting to me and it's been less than a minute._ "-sounds good." 

Eren nods and hands it to Levi, shoving the other one back where it belongs. "Good choice." 

Levi struggles to peel off the wrapper, his attention repeatedly drifting toward the body pressed close to his. He wasn't sure if it was intentional or not but he can't deny he enjoys it immensely. 

"Do you need help?" Eren's voice hints at laughter, coloring the tips of Levi's ears a pale pink.

"Does it look like it, shitty brat?" Levi completely deadpans, immediately regretting it. This is how every one of his fresh relationships end (he's been told his deadpan is intimidating). The only people that have managed to see through his naturally cold exterior are Erwin and Hanji, his current and wonderful publishers.

Eren's loud laughter breaks Levi's trance. "Indeed it does, here, give it to me." Eren easily manages to pull the lollipop out of Levi's stunned hand, only to unwrap it and return it seconds later. "There you go, grumpy old man." 

Levi's eyes go the tiniest bit wide before he manages to stammer back a response. "I'm not old..." -but he's sure as hell grumpy.

"Suuurrrre..." Eren winks and pulls his DS out of his bag, flipping the screen up and whipping the stylus out. Levi watches in silence as Eren brings up a game, gradually becoming more interested in the strange creatures on his screen.

"The hell is that?" Levi didn't realize he said it out loud, nor did he realize how close he had gotten to Eren until he feels his chest rumble with a chuckle and answer.

"It's Giratina, one of my favorite Pokemon." 

In an attempt to prevent the blush spreading from his ears to his face, Levi responds with the wittiest comment he has available.

"Why would you poke a man?" 

Eren explodes with laughter, his game forgotten. "Oh my god, Leviiiii!!! Do you really not know what Pokemon is?" Tears pool in Eren's eyes, his laughter still bouncing in the tiny compartment. 

At first Levi's tempted to convince Eren he was making a joke, but then he realizes how hard it would be to continuously pretend he knew what Eren was talking about. 

With a mildly disappointed sigh, Levi admits the truth. "...no."

"We've got a lot of work cut out for us." Eren moves his bag from his lap to the opposite side, allowing room to scooch in close to Levi.

Levi desperately tries to ignore his wandering thoughts and pounding heart to focus on what Eren's saying.

"...the hp, when you use an attack-" 

Levi settles in for the 30-minute ride, gladly listening to Eren babble on and on about the game in his hands. Levi could _definitely_ get used to this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the desperate and unstoppable fall begins ;D ;D


	4. Distractions Galore

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi struggles to focus and ends up throwing himself back to the first time he met with Erwin and Hanji. Eventually, even that can't keep his mind away from the frustrating thought of that special person.

Levi's always loved to write, he still remembers when he was younger writing stories about his day in school or the shopping trip he had with his mother. It wasn't until high school that he decided to take it more seriously, writing essays rather frequently and earning the respect of his English teacher. 

After a bit of nudging, his teacher managed to get him to send in a sample of his writing to a few publishers. Each rejection letter sank Levi's spirits, yet he still refused to give up. 

It was junior year when he finally managed to snag an interview with a small publishing company from the area. He was nervous as hell but made sure to not let it show when he walked into the room. 

He still remembers it as though it was yesterday. After being led to the office by the secretary, he stood outside the door for a few seconds to prepare. A shiny golden plate labeled the door as 'Erwin Smith's Office', one of the executives of the company. 

Once he was steeled enough to enter, he turned the doorknob with his heart in his throat. The first thing he notices upon entering are two giant caterpillars about to eat the face of a very masculine cowboy wearing weird shoe strings around his neck.

"How often do you feed those things?" Mr. Smith raises an eyebrow toward Levi who in return points at his eyebrows. "They're massive." 

He takes a moment to soak the comment in, then startles Levi with a deep, rumbling laughter. "I think we're going to get along just fine." He gestures to the chair on the other side of his desk with a smile. "Have a seat."

They talked for a while, Mr. Smith- uh, Erwin- asking questions about Levi's path as a writer and his favorite genres. He appeared to be very pleased with Levi's answers, especially when he mentioned his preference for non-fiction. 

"I just like to look at the world for what it is, enough of the 'it is what you make it'. Really, that's just total bull, even if you have the drive of a thirsty vampire out for blood it all boils down to luck, something I seem to struggle with..." Levi trails off, afraid he may have said too much.

Erwin rests his chin in his hands, looking at Levi closely with an unreadable expression. Just as it borders on being uncomfortably long, he pushes off the desk and rolls his chair over to the phone. "Hanji, can you get in here?" 

Levi barely has time to comprehend what his action means before a ball of pure energy hurtles itself into the room, knocking over a vase in the process. Just before it hits the ground, Erwin lunges and catches it gracefully in his outstretched hand. Levi can't help but be impressed by his accuracy, although Erwin's face suggests it happens all the time.

"Is this him?! OH MY GOD REALLY?! Hell to the yes, fresh meat!" Levi's eyes flicker back and forth between Erwin and Hanji, trying to figure out what the hell is going on.

Erwin attempts to explain the situation at hand. Keyword: attempts. "Levi, this is-"

"HANJI! What a pleasure to meet you!" Hanji lunges forward and grabs Levi, pulling him out of the chair before he has a chance to do so himself. Hanji begins violently shaking his hand, flinging it up and down with no regards to his shoulder. "I read that essay you wrote about learning to drive, that was SOOOO deep, my goodness! Comparing it to learning to live, who even thinks of that?! And to think, you're only 17! Holy cow, you're short. McShorty Shorterson, I'm gonna call you midget!" 

"Shut up shitty four eyes-"

"Make that  _grumpy_  midget, oh, this is gonna be fuuuunnn!!" Hanji's voice raises in pitch until it's painful to the ears.

Erwin notices this and manages to coax Hanji back to an acceptable level with a few whispered words. Even then, she still hums with energy, its only outlet through her tapping toe. With a heavy exhale, Levi takes his seat once again, fixing where Hanji had ruffled his hair moments before.

"So if you're going to be part of our company, there are a few ground rules we have to lay out." Levi tries to focus on Erwin to the best of his ability, but Hanji's constant motion and intense stare make it difficult.

"First off- we're a family here." Levi's surprised that such a professional looking company would have a policy such as that. "Sometimes life gets tough and we're all here to help each other out, writing can be difficult when you do it alone." The tone of voice suggests Erwin speaks from personal experience but he doesn't elaborate. 

"That leads us to our second rule- be honest. I'm not asking for you to tell us all your private information. What I  _am_ looking for is an honest client that can take truthful criticism and return with honest remarks. It's nearly impossible to get better if you aren't true to yourself and those around you."

"Third and final rule...what  _is_  our final rule?" Erwin chuckles, looking to Hanji for help.

"HAVE FUN!!" Hanji jumps forward, her energy coming forth in a small burst. "You're here to do what you love, I presume-" Hanji scans Levi up and down, second guessing the observation.

"Tch."

"-so you gotta act like it!!" Despite Erwin's warnings against touching, Hanji lunges forward to push the corners of Levi's comfortable pout into a pained smile.

"Now now Hanji, that's more than enough. Give him some room." Hanji pouts and pats Levi on the cheek before receding once again.

"So...where does that leave us now?" Levi fights the urge to massage the feeling of Hanji's filthy hands out of his cheeks.

Erwin grins and stands up, reaching his hand across the desk to shake Levi's hand. "Welcome to the Maria Publishing Company."

  
  


* * *

  
  


Levi's drawn back to the real world when the phone rings loudly. Cursing under his breath, he reads the caller ID and answers with his standard greeting. 

"What do you want, shitty four eyes?" Against his best attempts, his attitude still comes across as pissed and grumpier than usual (which happens to be the case, thanks to the thought of a certain brat).

"Hey, super grumpy midget! Just calling to check in on your book, how's it coming along?" 

Levi looks at the open pamphlets scattered across both the coffee table and kitchen counter. His eyes scan the blank word document open before him, every flicker of the cursor taunting him for his failure to write.

"Just dandy." The heavy sarcasm makes it obvious that's not quite the case, but Hanji senses his terrible mood and lets it slide anyway.

"Alrighty, I'm looking forward to the next chapter. Good luck and remember, enjoy yourself!" Hanji's last words carry a bit more weight than usual with Eren's image heavy on his mind. 

"Bye." Levi hangs up before getting Hanji's response, desperate for something to remedy his horrible mood. With a low groan, he sets the laptop on the black leather cushion beside him and heads to the kitchen to make a nice steaming cup of tea.

While he waits for the tea to steep, he finds his thoughts wandering once more. Eren's name floats through the blank space in his head, occasionally colliding with spontaneous Pokemon and their corresponding facts. 

Levi spaces out just long enough for the tea to become too saturated with flavor. Grumbling, he dumps the cup and starts anew, this time watching closely to make sure the tea flavors just right. 

With the warm drink in hand, Levi heads toward the couch but stops halfway. After contemplating his choices, he determines there's no way he could focus enough to write anything worthwhile. 

With a bit of guilty relief, Levi shuts the lid of the laptop and grabs his phone to head toward the bedroom. With his hip, he bumps the door open and sets course for the black wooden desk in the corner. 

He reserves this spot for when he's struggling the most, the memories etched into the grain of the wood helping him through his toughest patches. He's kept this desk since middle school when his mother bought it from a yard sale. His family always struggled with money, so being able to find such a wonderful piece of furniture within their budget was a stroke of pure luck. Really, the only one he's ever had...

...except for Eren.

"Damn it!" Levi angrily sets his mug down, sending a few droplets of tea splashing across his desk and onto the floor.  _Stop thinking about Eren, he's only going to slow things down and make it impossible to move forward! Especially when you only have a month here..._

After a few deep breaths, Levi manages to calm himself and clear his mind enough to notice the droplets slowly soaking into the wood. With a grimace, Levi takes a few steps to his closet to grab a roll of paper towels he stores away for emergencies such as this one.

With a few sweeps, he manages to soak up all the liquid and return the roll to its rightful spot among the other cleaning supplies stocked away in the dark. 

Tired and pissed, Levi takes a sip of his tea as he settles into the soft grey fabric of his wheelie chair. After swiveling back and forth a bit, Levi feels calm enough to set his tea down and reach for his precious journal.

He opens to a blank page and grabs his favorite felt pen, uncapping it and placing the tip on the page. With a gentle exhale, he lets his thoughts go and allows his hand to do what feels right. 

In a trance, Levi fills the page with whatever nonsense comes floating up from the depths of his twisty, turvy mind.

It's nearly ten minutes before Levi's hand finally comes to a rest. He shakes his tense muscles out and begins to read what he wrote with curious eyes.

" _Eyes of an undeterminable green and blue, it's as though the colors are locked in a dance of dominance. When he smiles, the corners of his eyes scrunch up and his irises glow with the intense color of their choosing. Sometimes his eyebrows furrow when he gets intensely focused, creasing the skin in the cutest way. Light freckles dot his skin, cheek to cheek across his nose. They're only visible up close, making it a wonderful secret that he rarely can confide. His lips-"_

In a fit of fury, Levi grabs the page and begins to tear it, the sound of ripping paper echoing in his ears. Halfway through, he suddenly stops with the realization that this is the best work he's written in a long time. 

In utter disbelief, Levi puts the book down and stares at it blankly. His eyes scan the rest of the page, returning back to the top after reaching the end. A few read throughs later and Levi can't deny his infatuation any longer.

With a heavy mind and a light heart, Levi abandons his journal and cold tea for his bed. Feet dragging, he flops onto the cool white sheets and buries his face, thoughts of the gorgeous geek overwhelming his brain. 

It's not long until exhaustion takes over from lack of sleep and Levi falls asleep with Eren's name on his lips.

  
  
  


 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Got the update here and ready! Hope you enjoyed the longer chapter, I figured it'd be a good idea to get a bit of background on Levi's relationship with Hanji and Erwin and understand his struggle with writing.
> 
> See you in the next one! <3


	5. Eren- 2.0 Update

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren thinks about his life up to this point and decides he prefers his current standings. With that out of the way, he's able to speculate the probability of Levi being part of the Mafia and decides the chances are high. Oh, and he drinks a strawberry banana smoothie.

After a bit of jiggling, Eren hears the sound of the computer booting up and the little light turns green. With a sigh of satisfaction, Eren carefully backs out from underneath the desk and brushes off his knees.  
  
"There you go, Ms. Jensen, good as new." Eren gestures to the junky old computer sitting on the desk beside him, the lights flickering at last.  
  
"Thank you, Eren, you're such a dear! I don't know what I'd ever do without you." Ms. Jensen grabs Eren shirt sleeve and pulls him down to her height to ruffle his messy hair. With a chuckle, Eren half-heartedly reaches back up to fix it.  
  
"No problem, just call me anytime!" Eren packs up his small toolbox and latches it shut, prepared to head out. Just before he picks up the handle, Ms. Jensen calls his name from the adjacent room.  
  
"Eren, come in here sweetie for one moment!" Eren pauses to glance at the toolbox and decides to take it with him to make sure he doesn't forget it.  
  
"You've been such a good help that I just wanted to give you this." Before Eren has time to refuse, he finds a twenty placed in his hands with a little smiley face drawn in the corner.  
  
"Oh, Ms. Jensen, you really don't have to-"  
  
"No, I insist! Use it to buy yourself something nice." She shoos Eren out the door, ignoring his protests and locking the door behind him.  
  
With a chuckle, Eren tucks the bill in his pocket and shouts a 'thank you' at the closed door. With a spring in his step, he sets off toward his favorite cafe just a few blocks down.  
  


* * *

  
"Could I get a small strawberry banana smoothie with a shot of protein please?" Eren waits patiently as the young employee types it in and announces the cost. With a warm smile, Eren hands over his new twenty and accepts the change with the same bright expression.   
  
As he steps aside to allow the next customer up, he catches a glimpse of the GameStop across the street and nearly shudders with the memories that come with it. He manages to hold them off long enough to get his smoothie, but as he heads out the door his eyes drift back to the run-down storefront. Before he can stop himself, he gets thrown back to the pains of the past.  
  


* * *

  
"Eren, you've been at that game for days now, have you even slept?!" Armin's concerned voice barely reaches Eren's ears from the phone abandoned on the floor. His eyes are intensely focused on the current game of Halo 3, convinced that if he ignored Armin long enough he'd go away.  
  
However, after five headshots in a row, Armin's voice is still nagging from the background. With a groan, Eren takes his third break in over 36 hours to answer the phone.  
  
"Whaddya want, Armin??" His voice is hoarse from screaming into his headset at his teammates, tipping Armin off that he was indeed still playing.  
  
"I want you to get your ass-" Shit, Armin's getting serious, he never curses... "-out of that game and into the real world. You've missed 3 days of school and I'm not going to lie for you any longer. You need to get your head on straight and take some time off from your stupid games!"  
  
Eren sits dumbfounded, his mouth hung open. Armin never curses, let alone yells... "...shit, man, okay, sheesh." Eren hangs up and looks at his TV screen, contemplating continuing anyway. However, Armin's voice bugs him to quit and shut the overheated system off for the first time in forever.  
  
It's almost like a light switch is turned on in Eren's head. He looks around at the empty bags of chips and energy drinks surrounding him. A tiny beam of light breaks through the curtains, illuminating all the dust and dead skin floating through the air after months without a thorough cleaning.  
  
Eren pushes away the sea of garbage surrounding him and stands to further survey the mess. When he reaches his full height, he suddenly gets light-headed and is forced to sit back down on his bed. It turns out potato chips and caffeine aren't all that great for your body. With a deep sigh, Eren grabs his phone and calls Armin back.  
  
"I need your help."  
  


* * *

  
With nasty chills up and down his spine, Eren returns back to his current head just in time to avoid walking into a display of shoes.   
  
It's been five years since he's transitioned from obsessive to casual gaming and he hopes to never go back. As a teen, he wrecked his body and mind over some silly little games riddled with trolls and addictive rewards. Thankfully Armin was there to help him see the light.   
  
Now, as a young adult, Eren's settled with the more classic games that don't involve other players nearly as much. He tried quitting gaming altogether, but he couldn't just give up such a big part of his life.   
  
If he's not playing a game, he's learning about classic hardware in hopes of specializing. He's tried working fast food and customer service but nothing satisfies him like hearing the whir of a broken down system coming back to life. The newer stuff doesn't break nearly as often and replacements are easy to find, urging him toward the older and more challenging mechanics. However, when Eren's only employment is from the same five elderly customers, he's left with a lot of free time on his hands.  
  
With the smoothie done, Eren tosses the empty cup into the nearest garbage can and pulls out a lollipop.   
  
Pleased with the cherry flavor flooding his tongue, he sets off on the half hour trek home. After walking it for a few years, he's managed to engrain the path into the back of his mind.   
  
As a car rushes past, old memories once again flood Eren's head. It seems as though his mind keeps being thrown to the past, much more so since meeting Levi.  
  
Eren remembers the night vividly. He had been driving home in the middle of winter after visiting Mikasa at college when a car came out of a white wall of snow. The head on collision resulted in Eren nearly dying from internal bleeding. Luckily, the ambulance got there before it was too late and managed to rush Eren to the hospital just in time for surgery. The whole ordeal left a bit of trauma on Eren, even with his hard head and stubborn heart. Since then he's avoided cars at almost all costs, preferring any other means of public transportation.   
  
After trying everything from buses to trains, he's decided walking is definitely his favorite. It allows him to experience more of the world that he was nearly taken from.   
  
With a new found wonder for the universe, Eren began to take life day by day and experienced anything and everything.   
  
He keeps his taste buds occupied with lollipops if not food from every culture. He enjoys touching things as he walks past; feeling the rough wool of winter coats and smooth chill of glass. He listens carefully to the sound of children laughing and people talking about the weather.  
  
Admittedly, his favorite sense is sight. At every available opportunity, Eren sets out with his phone in hand and stops at new "Pokestops" to:  
  
A) Catch Pokemon and get more pokeballs  
  
and  
  
B) Visit the interesting places surrounding him  
  
He loves to admire the statues that artists spent months making only to receive years worth of pigeon poop. He likes to watch the ducks swim around in the duck pond and leave little waves in their wake. In the spring, he departs without his phone and simply enjoys the colors and scents of budding flowers.  
  
Eren turns the corner sharply and nearly crashes into a rack of suits out on display for half off. A sudden image of a brown haired and freckled boy cut in half flashes in his mind. With a slightly concerned chuckle, he shrugs it off as nothing and fixes himself to continue on his way. Soon enough his thoughts begin to drift toward Levi.  
  
He's known him for almost a week now and still knows nothing but his name.   
  
_He wears really fancy suits...maybe he's a billionaire?? WHAT IF HE'S PART OF THE MAFIA. That would be so cool!!! Wait...does that mean he's out to get me? Shit, I'd be so screwed but who cares, he's hot._   
  
Eren grins cheekily as he turns the key to his tiny apartment, trying to think of subtle questions he could ask about Levi's life. If he does turn out to be a dangerous criminal...  
  
"This could be fun."  
  


 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed this chapter! After getting background on Levi I thought it'd be important to do the same for Eren. Now that we kinda know where they're both coming from, we can have some more fun ;D
> 
> Expect awkward flirting and fluff in the next update! <3


	6. -Update-

I'm sorry but this fanfic has lost its appeal to me. I just completed NaNoWriMo and realized I've been pushing myself too hard so I'm going to have to leave the fic where it is. If anyone's interested in picking it up, I can message you with the plot and help with any planning, I'd rather not leave this dead! Thanks for coming this far and hopefully someone will pick up where I left off :)


	7. Update

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> THIS ISN'T PART OF THE FIC. I'm just explaining what's been going on.

Hi everyone, I’m your new author.

This is for those of you who have been wondering what’s going on with this fic.  
First of all, I would like to sincerely apologize to all of you who were looking forward to see this through to the end. You were promised a writer and then disappointed. I am truly sorry. To the original author of this fic, I don’t think I have anything to say other than I am so, so sorry. You were so excited when I said I’d pick up where you left off, and then I didn’t. But, two years later, I’m back.

Truth is, ereri was my medicine. For a long time I was depressed and dealing with some heavy stuff that I didn’t know how to handle, so I read. I read until it affected my GPA because I’d read rather than do homework. I spent all my time switching between tumblr and AO3 and not dealing with anything that really needed dealing with.

Shortly after I was added as an author here, I was hit by writer’s block. I wanted to keep up with the previous writer’s style because I didn’t have one of my own. I wanted my first chapter to be filled with 800 puns and writing skills I just didn’t possess because I wanted it to be perfect. I always expect way too much out of myself, and when I don’t live up to that, I get frustrated and end up putting half the effort into it I had initially wanted. I didn’t want that to happen here, so I stopped completely. I didn’t understand that back then, I thought I was just being lazy and I couldn’t face up to it.

A few months after that I hoped people would just forget and move on, and maybe they have. I haven’t seen any comments wondering what’s going on after all. Still, I feel like I owe the truth to anyone who wants it. Anyway, things started getting bad for me on one of my sources of happy: tumblr. The discourses on there were eating away at my mental health. Eventually, I decided to take a short break from the site. I haven’t been back on it in a very long time. An unforeseen consequence of that was that I spent less time on AO3 as well. I wasn’t on tumblr so I wasn’t seeing new fic recommendations, and I wasn’t looking for any by myself. I was still receiving occasional email updates from my subscriptions every two months or so, and I’d always read those, but that’s about as far as I’d go.

Turns out, that break from tumblr was everything I needed and more. I learned, I grew, I took a deep breath and started dealing with things. I figured out how to be happy on my own. Yes, I still have depression. I still beat myself up when I don’t meet my expectations. I still get nauseous from anxiety. But I’ve learned. I know I’ll always be my biggest critic, but what improvements will I make if I don’t practice?

So that brings me here. I can’t promise weekly updates, but I will try my damn hardest to not leave this fic untouched for another two years. I hope you can forgive me because after all, fandoms are forever.

Sincerely,  
Fandoms_Forever

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know, maybe I'm being too dramatic? Let me know. 
> 
> Tumblr: attackonhogwarts

**Author's Note:**

> This first chapter was the oneshot that inspired this to become a full fanfic, thank you for everyone that encouraged this to happen!
> 
> This is supposed to be a fun side project to keep myself writing, so my aim is to keep it minimally stressful. That being said, I'm going to aim for at least 1k per chapter and an update once a week. I don't think I'll be setting a day until I've fallen into a habit, but keep a look out for what's to come! Thanks for reading <3


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